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Sarleon Halberdier
The Halberdiers are Sarleon's elite infantrymen, rightly feared by those who rely on cavalry. With good health, surprisingly effective armor, and startling speed, they are a force to be reckoned with; wielding mighty sarleon halberds, their every swing can cleave right through both man and horse (as the writer of this can attest, having lost more than one mount against them during the reunification of Pendor,) and the axe-like head shattering all but the sturdiest shields in only a few solid strikes. Don't underestimate their versatility in open battles and to a more limited extent, sieges. The reach of their weapons is unmatched save perhaps by D'Shar and Singalian soldiers who wield similar weapons, and as a result many a lesser fighter has been killed before even getting within swinging range of these men as the halberd's head split their skull. The same weapons allow them to halt a cavalry charge in its tracks when utilized properly like any other polearm, and if they've the swinging room, proceed to massacre the unfortunate mounted troops who've been stalled by them. Additionally in some siege conditions, they can and will clear a foothold on the walls with their deadly sweeping strikes from atop the ladder or siege ramp, though without soldiers armed with shorter weapons to back them, they will likely not hold it for long. The Halberdier's main weaknesses are two-fold: first, his necessary a lack of shield, which leaves them extremely vulnerable to ranged troops of any sort (even a mass of lower-end soldiers might manage to take them down with some luck,) and skirmisher-like troops like the Empire Legionnaires, many Fierdsvain fighters, and most upper end D'Shar foot soldiers. It would be wise to send properly equipped soldiers - any soldier with a shield essentially - ahead of them, lest they be cut down by a storm of pointy distance-delivered death before they get within swinging distance. Second is an unfortunate result of their own tools of war and shared by any soldier who favors larger weaponry - while the reach of their halberds is great, so is the swinging room needed to use it effectively. Tightly packed formations of infantry which include halberdiers will likely see little benefit from these soldiers, as they ineffectually try to swing their halberds at the foe only to have them catch on the shield or mail of men to their side or behind them. Even with these shortcomings however, open-order battle is where they shine, plentiful space letting them bring their weapons to bear with full force. More than one cavalryman will find himself de-horsed - particularly anyone with poorly armored horses - and many soldiers suddenly without shield (if not killed on the first strike or two,) in unpleasantly short order if they attempt to fight a halberdier alone. There are the obvious exceptions already listed, as they can often rather easily overpower a halberdier man-to-man with thrown projectiles alone, never mind once they get close enough to give them a hug. They are equipped with Heraldic Mail or Heraldic Sarleon Platemail, with Gauntlets and either a Great Helmet or Sarleon Sallet as well as either Shynbaulds or Mail Boots. Their only weapon is a Sarleon Halberd. This troop is upgraded from Sarleon Man-at-Arms for 200 d and upgrades no more. mb183.jpg|Halberdiers charging Category:Sarleon Category:Sarleon Troops